Page 58 of Midnight Salvation

The grim reaper stood behind us with his scythe ready to cut down any souls who had dared to follow us. My first shot blew out the front tyre of the motorbike, sending the rider flying through the air. My next shots brought him back to earth with a bang.

Jordan started picking off our enemies one at a time beside me. A screech of brakes behind me alerted me to Xavier arriving. He jumped from his black Range Rover, joining in the task of stopping the biker gang who tailed us. Where the fuck did they all come from?

Lucas emerged from the other side of the vehicle and started to prowl across the road with a machete in one hand and a gun in the other. No survivors were left in his wake, and I finally saw the man who people were terrified of. He was a cold-blooded killer who didn’t stop to ask questions or consider redemption. One man sat on his knees and tried to plead for his life. He was met with the blade of his machete.

This was war and there would be no survivors.

The silence when it arrived was more deafening than the gunshots. We had run out of targets. Jordan pulled his helmet off and started talking into his phone. “I need a clean-up crew. Yes, right now unless you want to try and explain this to the police. I’ll text the location.”

Xavier looked down on the devastation. “Matteus must have had security details watching Nicole. The sneaky bastard is always one step ahead.”

My phone rang and I took it out of my pocket. “It’s Dad,” I announced, swiping to answer it. “Hello?”

“Where are you?”

My tracker said I was at my apartment. “Home, nursing a headache. What’s up, Dad?”

“I need you and your brothers home immediately.” His tone was tense and clipped.

“I’ve had a few drinks and feel drowsy with the medication. Is this something I can deal with from here?”

“No. Your cousins have been assassinated and I have convened a family council.”

“What the fuck happened?” I stepped into my role as his heir.

“No one knows, but Eli is devastated. He wants answers and that makes two of us.”

I sighed. “Leave it with me, Dad. Where are Aaron and Oliver?”

His pause was damning. “Their trackers have gone offline,” he finally admitted.

“What?” I bellowed down the phone. “When were you fucking going to tell me that? Fuck Uncle Eli, I need to find my brothers. Send me their last locations.”

“Ash,” he growled. “If someone is targeting our family tonight, you could be my last son alive.”

“If my brothers are in danger, then I’m needed out here. I’ll let you know what I find.” I hung up without waiting for an answer. There was no doubt in my head that Dad had already sent someone to their homes and discovered them empty.

The muffled squeak drew my attention back to Nicole. She sat against the wall hidden behind my bike with her knees drawn up to her chest. Her eyes met mine and she silently shook her head.

I always thought she was dead inside, but now I realised that she had been horribly broken by men with a god complex.

To stop her from trying to run, I walked slowly toward her with my hand out. “We need to go,” I said.

She continued to shake her head and cowered back into the wall.

I crouched down in front of her. “I need you to trust me.”

“No.” She fervently shook her head and began to rock. “I can’t do this. I don’t want to get married to you…”

“Thank God for that, because my wife is seriously pissed that I have a fiancée as well.”

Her eyes widened and mouth fell open at my words.

“She didn’t like your ring either,” I continued. “And I trust her opinion, considering that she’s a jewellery designer.”

Nicole blinked and chewed the side of her mouth. “You don’t want to marry me?” she queried.

“Sorry, but I’m already married to the woman I love.”

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